Taylor Walker

12, named after Maurice Walker’s football jersey number he sported throughout grade school, is about how Maurice’s inability to get drafted into the NFL, despite doing everything right, shapes his life now. Growing up, you’re told that you can be anything you put your mind to, but what happens when no matter the amount of hard work, you cannot make your dream a reality? This story disrupts meritocracy and acknowledges the many career paths and emotional journeys your 20s may take you.

As a Black American woman, I am a product of the atrocities the US has perpetrated against Black people. Inspired by a lack of knowledge of my own family history due to state-sanctioned violence, I wanted to delve into the larger conversation of Black history being erased. "And Don’t Forget I Love You" uses archival footage to showcase Black people’s longstanding presence in film despite eighty percent of Black silent films being “lost." Through my film, I illustrate how lack of knowledge regarding Black silent film history is a microcosm of our history being erased and destroyed by white people.